This invention relates generally to methods for treating circulatory disorders and, more specifically, to a method for treating circulatory disorders through the use of acoustic waves.
There are numerous disorders that effect the circulatory system of human and animal bodies. These include the following: atherosclerosis, coronary artery disease, ischemic heart disease, angina pectoris, and certain forms of impotence. The effective treatment of these disorders, and the pain, discomfort and other effects they cause, is obviously a matter for concern.
Some background information regarding these disorders, their causes, their effects on the body, and their treatments, illustrate the foregoing:
Atherosclerosis is a thickening or hardening of the arteries caused by a build-up of plaque in the inner lining of an artery. The plaque is made up of fatty substances, cholesterol, cellular waste products, calcium and fibrin. The plaque can partially or totally block the flow of blood through an artery, and can cause bleeding/hemorrhaging into the plaque or the formation of a blood clot on the surface of the plaque. When the hemorrhaging or clot blocks an entire artery, a heart attack or stroke may result.
The name coronary artery disease describes the condition where the coronary arteries have become sufficiently narrowed that the flow of blood to the heart is reduced. (One of the possible causes of such narrowing is atherosclerosis.) Ischemia is another name for reduced blood flow. A reduced flow of blood to the heart results in coronary heart disease, in which the heart muscle is damaged as a result of receiving an inadequate amount of blood due to an obstruction of its blood supply. Symptoms of coronary artery disease range from mild angina, discussed below, to a full-scale heart attack. These symptoms generally begin when there is about a 75% narrowing of a coronary artery. Approximately 13,900,000 Americans suffer from coronary heart disease, and it is the leading cause of death in the United States.
One symptom of coronary heart disease is angina pectoris, a recurring chest pain or discomfort that occurs when the heart does not receive as much blood as it needs for a particular level of work. The symptoms of angina are usually triggered by physical exertion, although they may also be triggered by emotional stress, extreme cold or heat, a heavy meal, alcohol, or smoking. The pain of angina may usually be relieved by resting or with angina medication, such as nitroglycerin, beta-blockers, and calcium channel blockers. Preferably, the underlying coronary disease causing the angina should be treated as well.
Coronary disease may be treated by the control of risk factors, such as high blood pressure, cigarette smoking, high blood cholesterol levels, and excess weight. Drug therapy is also available, including beta blockers and clot-dissolving agents. Where these are insufficient, invasive procedures such as cardiac catheterization, cardiac angiography, coronary artery bypass grafting, and angioplasty may be utilized.
Impotence, or erectile dysfunction, refers to the consistent inability to sustain an erection sufficient for sexual intercourse. It affects between 10 and 15 million American men. Impotence usually has a physical cause, and any disorder that impairs blood flow in the penis may cause impotence. One of the most common causes of impotence is damage to arteries. Diseases relating to circulation, including atherosclerosis and vascular disease, also account for a significant percentage of the cases of impotence.
Treatments for impotence, following the elimination of potential harmful drugs and behavior modifications, include vacuum devices, oral drugs (such as Viagra(copyright)), locally injected drugs, and surgically implanted devices.
It should be clear then that each of these disorders presents a problem to those who are afflicted, and that safe and effective treatments are desirable. With respect to treatment methods, non-invasive, non-surgical techniques are generally preferred to surgery. Moreover, safe non-chemical treatments are generally preferred to the use of medications, which can have foreseen or unforeseen side-effects on the body. While the individual disorders listed here have different causes, the fact that they all relate to the circulatory system raises the possibility that a single treatment could potentially work for each of these disorders. The present invention is directed to a treatment for each of these disordersxe2x80x94a treatment that is non-invasive, non-surgical, and non-chemical.
In U.S. Pat. No. 5,132,942, issued to applicant herein, a low frequency electroacoustic transducer (the xe2x80x9cCassone Transducerxe2x80x9d) is disclosed. According to U.S. Pat. No. 5,132,942, the Cassone Transducer could be used to efficiently disperse emulsions, chemical and other wastes, and the like for recycling and environmental enhancement. The Patent does not disclose the use of the Cassone Transducer for medical purposes. It is to that use that the current invention is directed.
It is an object of this invention to provide a non-invasive method for treating circulatory disorders.
It is a further object of this invention to provide a non-surgical method for treating circulatory disorders.
It is a still further object of this invention to provide a non-chemical method for treating circulatory disorders.
It is a still further object of this invention to provide a method for treating circulatory disorders through the use of acoustic waves.
In accordance with one embodiment of the present invention, a method for treating circulatory disorders is disclosed. The method comprises the steps of: providing a low frequency sonic transducer; immersing the low frequency sonic transducer in a liquid-containing container; positioning a person having a circulatory disorder a therapeutically beneficial distance from the low frequency sonic transducer; and exposing the person for a therapeutically beneficial period of time to acoustic waves from the low frequency sonic transducer at a therapeutically beneficial frequency method for treating inflammatory musculoskeletal connective tissue disorders is disclosed.
In accordance with another embodiment of the present invention, a method for treating circulatory disorders is disclosed. The method comprises he steps of: providing a low. frequency sonic transducer; immersing the low frequency sonic transducer in a liquid-containing container; positioning a person having a circulatory disorder between approximately one foot and approximately twenty feet from the low frequency sonic transducer from the low frequency sonic transducer; and exposing the person for between approximately fifteen minutes and forty-five minutes to acoustic waves from the low frequency sonic transducer at approximately six hundred Hertz.
In accordance with still another embodiment of the present invention, a method for treating circulatory disorders is disclosed. The method comprises the steps of: Providing a low frequency sonic transducer; immersing the low frequency sonic transducer in a liquid-containing container; positioning at least a portion of a body a person having a circulatory disorder in the liquid-containing container; and exposing the person for between approximately fifteen minutes and forty-five minutes to acoustic waves from the low frequency sonic transducer at approximately six hundred Hertz.